The star forward scored 9 in his first appearance in over a month.
Sam Dekker's return was another bright spot for London
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The London Lions had plenty of reasons to be happy after racing past Wolves Vilnius 87-101 on Tuesday night in the Lithuanian capital. Of course, chief among them was the win itself, which raised London’s record to 7-2 and guaranteed it at least a share of second place in Group A at the midway point of the regular season.
Then there was the way London played early in building a 35-55 halftime lead.
“We matched their physicality well tonight. We came out with a lot of energy,” said Conor Morgan, who shined with 22 points, 5 three-pointers made and a PIR of 36, which were all career bests.
With that energy, London turned defense into offense in the early going; the visitors collected 6 steals and forced 11 turnovers in the first 20 minutes and turned them into 20 points. In contrast, Wolves only netted 5 points from London's 6 first-half turnovers.
Wolves fought back in the second half, when they only committed 4 more turnovers. The hosts also outrebounded London 42-33, but that 20-points halftime difference was too much for Wolves to overcome.
The victory was a perfect time for London to welcome back its star forward Sam Dekker, who had not played since Round 4, over a month ago. Dekker featured for only 15:31 minutes, in which he contributed 9 points and 3 rebounds. Nevertheless, having him back is huge for the club as it looks to the second half of the regular season.
“He is extremely important [to our team],” London head coach Petar Bozic said after the game. “He is one of the leaders on our team. We are fortunate that we have more. It was really a pleasure seeing him back on the court.”
And with Dekker back in tow, London has good reason to be excited about whatever is coming next.